Researchers found that the Ebola was significantly more likely to emerge in areas with surrounding forest loss

By Nellie Peyton

DAKAR, Oct 30 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Ebola outbreaks tend to occur two years after trees have been cut down or forests cleared in West and Central Africa, researchers said on Monday, suggesting that deforestation data could be used to predict outbreaks of the deadly disease.

The Belgian international development policy is undergoing a complete transformation. Under the impulse of the Sustainable Development Goals we opt in many different fields for a new approach and for international leadership. Innovation is the key word in this context.

In 2015, as the Millennium Development Goals reach their deadline, the world can reflect on real progress. Since 1990, thanks to the actions of millions of people around the globe, extreme income poverty has been cut by almost two-thirds, child mortality has fallen by more than half, and more children are attending primary school than ever before.

The Annual Report is prepared by the Executive Directors of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and the International Development Association (IDA)--collectively known as the World Bank--in accordance with the by-laws of the two institutions. The President of the IBRD and IDA and the Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors submits the Report, together with the accompanying administrative budgets and audited financial statements, to the Board of Governors.

The Environmental Research Management Foundation, Environmental Foundation for Africa in collaboration with the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) have launched a six-month intensive research report titled "Ebola Virus Disease and Forest Fragmentation in Africa".

Oxfam helped almost a third more people caught up in humanitarian disasters in 2014-15 as it responded to an unprecedented number of emergencies including the outbreak of Ebola in West Africa and ongoing conflicts in Syria and South Sudan.

The organisation supported 8.1 million people across 39 humanitarian disasters over the year, providing clean water, sanitation and food, compared to 6.1 million across 24 emergencies in 2013-14.

Red Cross Staff receive confirmed Ebola patients at the then new Ebola treatment Centre in Kenema, Sierra Leone in September. More than 25,000 cases have been registered and more than 10,000 deaths in the worst Ebola epidemic the world has seen. National Societies continue to be on the forfront of the reponse and the IFRC, and its Secretariat have worked together to support them.
IFRC/2014

Countries at Epicentre of Ebola Crisis DiscussLack of Preparedness, Potential for Political Crisis

There was a danger of “widespread indifference” when a union of States was passive in the face of hostilities suffered by defenceless populations, the Holy See’s Secretary of State told the General Assembly on the penultimate day of its annual debate.

Amid growing global tensions and turmoil, fostering neighbourly relations was vital to national development and prosperity and in keeping with the “surge of democracy” spreading throughout the world, the General Assembly heard today as debate continued into the weekend.